The US president's daughter said she made the decision so she could focus more on work as a White House adviser. Ivanka Trump's brand has been facing boycotts from shoppers after Donald Trump's election.
Image: picture alliance / Andrew Harrer/Consolidated News Photos/Andrew Harrer - Pool via CNP
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US President Donald Trump's daughter Ivanka Trump said on Tuesday she was closing down her fashion line to focus on her role as an informal adviser to her father.
"After 17 months in Washington, I do not know when or if I will ever return to the business, but I do know that my focus for the foreseeable future will be the work I am doing here in Washington," Ivanka Trump said in a statement on Tuesday.
Eighteen people will lose their jobs because of the closure.
Political boycotts
Ivanka Trump's fashion line of dresses, shoes and accessories was faced with political boycotts from shoppers after her father was elected.
Retailers Nordstrom, Sears and Hudson's Bay dropped the Ivanka Trump line, citing poor sales.
But the company said that its business was strong, and the decision to shut down had nothing do with its performance. It added that retailers, including Macy's, Dillard's and Amazon, continued to carry its wares.
"While the company is still viable, doing business has become far more challenging and these problems will only increase," said Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData Retail.
Several retailers dropped the Ivanka Trump line, citing slowing sales.Image: picture alliance/AP Photo/M. Lennihan
'Biggest possible win'
The brand has been plagued with criticism that it was benefiting from Ivanka Trump's White House ties, despite her splitting from the company's operations early last year.
In April last year, the Chinese government granted her company provisional approval for three new trademarks just as she dined with the Chinese president at her father's Mar-a-Lago resort.
The company has also faced criticism for making its products in Chinese factories and for the conditions in those factories.
"Grab Your Wallet," the most organized boycott of Trump-related businesses, called the move a victory.
"This is the biggest possible win for Grab Your Wallet," said the group's co-founder, Shannon Coulter, a San Francisco marketing executive.
From rich kid to runway model to first daughter and now offical White House employee - Ivanka Trump's life has been all but conventional. Here are some pictures of her unorthodox trajectory.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/J. Szenes
Child of divorce
12-year-old Ivanka Trump and her father, business magnate Donald Trump, peek over the crowd at the U.S. Open in New York, 1994. Ivanka Marie Trump was born in 1981 as the second child of Czech-American model Ivana Trump and Donald. Her parents divorced when she was 10 years old.
Image: picture alliance/ASSOCIATED PRESS/R. Frehm
Patchwork family
Ivanka Trump, holding her younger half-sister Tiffany, takes a picture with Donald Trump and his second wife Marla on her father's 50th birthday. Ivanka is one of four siblings.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/A. Savignano
Teenage model
16-year-old Ivanka Trump closes Thierry Mugler's haute couture show in Paris, 1997. Trump started modeling at the early age of 15 for Mugler and the likes of Versace and Paco Rabanne.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Seeking a role model
Teenage Ivanka Trump looks at her father, the multi-billionaire Donald Trump, at a polo club in Bridgehampton, New York, 1997.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/ipol Grant
Multi-million business woman
Ivanka Trump speaks during the Ivanka Trump Collection runway launch in New York in 2012. Trump made a name for herself with her own multi-million-dollar businesses. She has sold everything from diaper bags and baby shoes to clothing and jewelry.
Image: picture alliance/abaca/D. Van Tine
Partners in crime
Ivanka und Donald Trump laugh at the Trump Tower Mall opening in Istanbul, 2012. Ivanka joined the family business in 2005 and, together with her two brothers Donald Jr. and Eric, has been acting as executive vice-president of the Trump Organization. She announced she would be taking a formal leave of absence from both the Trump Organization after her father took office.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/T. Bozoglu
Family life
Ivanka Trump, and her husband Jared Kushner step off of Air Force One with their children as they arrive in West Palm Beach, 2017. Trump and Kushner got married in 2009 and have three children together.
Image: picture alliance/AP Images/W. Lee
Leading role in Trump campaign
Ivanka Trump addresses supporters of her father's campaign in South Carolina, 2016. She had a central role in Donald Trump's campaign and has been regarded as a mobilizer for female voters in support of Trump.
Image: picture alliance/AP Photo/A. Sanz
Way into the White House
Ivanka Trump und German Chancellor Angela Merkel whisper during a roundtable discussion in the Cabinet Room of the White House in March 2017. Last week the president's daughter came under fire for announcing she would become an advisor, without a specific title, but with an office in the White House.
Following criticism from ethics experts of her informal role in the White House, Ivanka Trump announced on Wednesday, she will become an official government employee. Her work as a presidential family member taking office in the White House, alongside her husband, continues to raise eyebrows.
